Graduated in 2007 with a degree in Jazz Composition. Principal instrument: trumpet.

Position: Software Administrator (official title: Director of Advancement Services) at MassART (Massachusetts College of Art and Design) John is the one “techie” working for their office of Institutional Advancement department, which raises money, puts on events, and keeps in touch with alumni. His roles involve helping people there do what they need to do with the databases and developing new functionality.

Overview: While still in high school, John was programming his graphing calculator to solve equations. He considered going to school for computer science, but elected to attend Berklee as he figured tech skills would be easier to pick up later. While at Berklee, he taught himself more technology on his own time, and was a student employee at Berklee’s learning center, where he developed greatly improved software for internal use. After graduated, he was hired as a very-part-time contractor to build software for Berklee’s Office of institutional development. Meanwhile, he searched for a full-time job, initially in either music or high-tech, but broadening the search as the weeks rolled by.

By August he got a job with a small company that made medical software, but he didn’t like the job very much, as the pay was mediocre, the commute was long, and he was very unfamiliar with medical terminology. However, in the spring of 2008 the person who had hired him for that project created a full-time position and urged John to apply for it, which he did and go the job. John stayed at Berklee for almost 6 years, getting promoted to asst. director of tech in that office. In early 2014 one of his bosses went to work for MassART and realized that they needed more tech expertise, so she reached out to him to come to MassART. It involved a raise and a promotion, so he took the job.

Choice Quotes: “In my experience a degree in a field isn’t as many points on a resume as you mght thing. At least in tech, it’s more about what you can do. What got me hired was a doing a ‘passion project,’ which I strongly recommend. You pick up skills that you got to make it happen, show you’re into it (unlike a required school project), and have something to show off.”

“A good indicator of what someone is passionate about is what they do in their free time. As a Berklee student my free time was spent playing video games, learning about tech/programming, and composing/jamming.”

“I have been doing answers on Stack Overflow, partly for my own benefit as I’d see questions whose answers I’d want to know, and I enjoy the challenge of figuring things out. It’s great I spend half an hour on a question, post an answer check back in a little bit later and 50 people have upvoted my answer. To get hired, be able to demonstrate that you have the relevant skills. With tech it’s your own project or website or (like me) a score of 4000 on Stack Overflow.”

Graduated in 2009 with a degree in Professional Music. Principal instrument: drums.

Position: Sales Representative for Breakthru Beverage Pennsylvania, a major distributor of alcoholic beverages. Jeff works for the fine wine division, selling to restaurants, bars, and festivals where wine is consumed on-site. His job involves building and maintaining relationships with the people in these places and getting them to order fine wines from among the 500+ varieties his company distributes. He earns a base salary + bonus according to whether he meets or exceeds his target sales quota.

Overview: While at Berklee, Jeff had a work-study job at the admissions office. After graduating, Jeff moved to Pennsylvania and married his high school sweetheart, who was still in college. For the next 18 months, he worked full-time at Starbucks while also gigging heavily, earning decent money but putting in truly insane hours. He also had fun volunteering at a local craft brewery. Jeff reached out to his former boss at Berklee, hoping for a job. As luck would have it, soon afterward there was a shake-up in Berklee’s Admissions Office and Jeff was hired to design and manage the campus touring experience.

For three years Jeff did that, along the way feeling that his career path was going to be in higher education rather than music. However, he continued his passion for craft beer at a local brewery. By 2013, he was ready to move on, and started looking for other jobs. His wife noticed a job ad for a marketing director at Bauer Wine and Spirits in the Back Bay. A friend of Jeff’s worked there part time and put in the good word, and Jeff was hired. For close to three years, Jeff worked there successfully, selling wine to customers as well as developing marketing strategies and campaigns. Eventually, he and his wife decided to move back to Pennsylvania, and he started looking for work. A colleague passed his resume along to someone he knew in that area, and Jeff got a call from his current employer, which led to and interview and him being hired into his current job.

Choice Quotes: “My job has two pieces: wine and selling. Wine is the gas the fuels the engine. I’m extremely passionate about anything fermented. I love the experience of different flavors and new things. I’ve met incredible people who make it or sell it. When it comes to selling, this is my first sales job in this way. It was a risk–I’m not a very aggressive, pushy person. But building a relationship slowly and being genuine and caring about whether my accounts succeed has been very effective and is satisfying. I’ts a real rush to close on an account that you’ve been working on for a month or two.”

“One theme that I’m sure you’ve heard from every salesperson you have spoken with is that all that matters in sales is the relationship and the trust. What it really comes down to is people buy from people they like. I have to be technically proficient, but to make a sale I really need to make a friend or at least a good business relationship.”

“Maybe 10% of people I meet in the wine industry at all level came to wine through music! The industry isn’t as glamorous as it seems from the outside. It is hard, hard work, but it is so rewarding if you’re passionate about it! I get to drink things and meet people I never could afford to otherwise.”

“If you’re trying to figure out your career, you need to stop worrying about what everyone else thinks you should be doing and think about what you’re spending your free time doing. If you’re spending it on a non-music hobby, consider exploring that as a career path.”

Matt Boyle

Left Berklee in 2008. (Completed his liberal arts at Bunker Hill Community College 2011-2014, Finished his very last requirement and officially graduated from Berklee in 2016), with a degree in Professional Music. Principal Instrument: bass.

Position: VIP Support Technician at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Matt is on a four-person team that supports technology for the office of the college president and other top-level administrative people. “Everything is done ‘from stratch,’ by hand, and on-side with everything double-checked.”

Overview: Starting at age 11, Matt would make a bit of money by buying computer parts, assembling computers, selling them, and providing technical support. Entering Berklee as a diploma student, Matt transitioned into the degree program, but left in 2008 due to financial issues. Matt searched widely for a job in the Boston area, focusing on both being a butcher and learning guitar repair, but his experience led to him being hired at the then-new Apple store as a “genius” (tech support), where he received good training and certifications for Apple products while making decent money. He worked there for around two and a half years, but grew weary of the long hours and erratic schedule which prevented him from finishing his education, and was sending out resumes.

Nearly a year after he had applied Matt heard back from the MIT-affiliated Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, to support their Apple hardware. He worked there for five years, eventually seeking ways to move up. MIT was doing a shake-up of its IT staff, and he was offered his current position in late 2015.
You can see Matt’s LinkedIn profile here.

Choice Quotes: “I like that I get downtime plus access to unlimited sources to learn things. The users I work with are amazing, fantastic people who have incredible stories! On the technical side, I really enjoy finding a solution to a problem nobody has been able to figure out. It’s awesome and I get a real charge out of that.”

“If you want to work in tech support, get lots of certifications. Your certifications are your resume in tech–it doesn’t matter where you went to school, but your certifications show you can do stuff. The Apple Store is a great place to start; there days I do a lot with lynda.”

“Put yourself in the customer’s shoes and treat the people that way you’d want to be treated, and you’ll be better than 95% of support technicians. I got my position because I got a reputation at being really good at working with people, even when they were angry or frustrated.”

“Visualizing something before you do it is the biggest thing I learned at Berklee–where I’d trained myself to figure out where your fingers will go before you play it–that’s just like what I do when I repair a computer. I’ll visualize the problem, consider the possible issues and figure out how to accomplish the fixes while I’m still walking toward the location with the issue. Often I’ll be in and out in a couple of minutes and people will think I’m a wizard.”

“I still play music with a band, Monkeys of a Bygone Era, though with my newborn kid. Anyone who really wants to stay in music, find a lucrative side hustle where you can work less than full time. Learning to code is a great plan–there are so many jobs. Many pay well (at least for the next 5-10 years) and you can do it from anywhere.”

Left Berklee in 2007 (Patrick finished his one remaining class and officially graduated in 2012.) with a major in Music Business. Principal instrument: cello.

Position: Lead Buyers Agent at Keller Williams Realty, Boston Metro office. Patrick helps prospective buyers of residential real estate, both home-buyers and investors, find and negotiate purchases of property which meets their needs. He also helps train and support several less-experienced buyers agents on his team.

Overview: Patrick was in a band at Berklee. During his last semester (spring 07), several friends said they thought he’d be good at real estate, so he got his real estate license that summer. For the next 6 months he focused on his band and worked odd jobs while living at home, until his parents insisted he get a “real” job. He got a job as an agent at Nextgen Realty in Alston, renting out apartments. While it was a high-turnover job, Patrick did well, ultimately staying over 6 years, the last 2.5 of which he also managed the office. Meanwhile, as he started doing well with apartment rentals (earning around $45,000 that first year and getting his own apartment), music became less of a priority–he’d miss band practices when he has real estate showings. Ultimately, Patrick decided to stay in Boston when his band moved to L.A.

After 6 years at NextGen, Patrick wanted to take the next step of working with buyers. He spent a couple of years teaching himself everything he could, “I’d seek out blogs, webinars, etc. I’d get into work at 6 AM and would spend three hours just reading and learning. Then in the evening I’d look at the listings to see what sold for what and figure out the Boston market.” However, he lacked experience and expertise in that area. A friend convinced him to work at Keller Williams Realty, where starting in the summer of 2014 he received more training and, with the reputation and support of a large agency, successfully launched his career as a buyer’s agent.

Choice Quotes: “There’s no ‘secret sauce’ I just care. I’m here to help someone and educate them to make the right decision for them. Often that decision isn’t to buy a house right away. It’s not about the money; it’s about helping people and adding value to their lives. If I do that, the money will come. I don’t want to fell bad about what I did for a client. Plus I want my former clients to be raging fans (of working with me). ”

“In the music world, and just about every industry, you have to be an entrepreneur and a marketer–arguably a marketer first. So accept that and take on that spirit–brush up on your business skills and how to approach people.”

“Since I started in this business I’ve been very heavy on social media, and everyone knows I’m a real estate agent. Just about all my business comes from people I know and referrals, though I also go to open houses and meet people.”

I love being my own boss, and having the freedom to work when I want. It’s gratifying to carve out a career where I feel like I’m making a difference in people’s lives. Buying a home is a huge deal and often very emotional, and helping folks through that process is really great.

Graduated in 2011 with a degree in Performance. Principal instrument: drums.

Position: Associate Teacher (Mathematics, grades 9 – 12) at LEAD Public Schools in Nashville, TN. For this one year Eric teaches full-time while being mentored and taking classes, then at the end of the academic year he receives his teaching certification. As of this interview (April 2017), he has been hired by the same school he has been working in to be a regular full-time math teacher starting in September.

Overview: After graduation, Eric and his now-wife (also a Berklee grad) worked together as musicians on cruise ships for two years, but eventually it got old and they decided to do something else. They fell in love with Nashville and decided to move there, Eric taking a job at guitar center to make ends meet in addition to regular gigging. Later, he got a job processing payments, then selling small boats, as the money was a bit better than guitar center, while continuing to gig and teach some music lessons, including to disadvantaged students at the W.O. Smith School. But after around two and a half years in Nashville Eric realizes that his heart wasn’t really in having a music career. “The people who were doing it were making sacrifices I didn’t want to make.”

Feeling strongly about social justice, Eric looked for jobs in human services non-profits, then his wife discovered this brand new National Teacher Residency program in which he would get his certification while working. Having enjoyed working with disadvantaged students, Eric thought that teaching would be a great career–and being able to earn rather than spend money in that first year made this program particularly attractive. There was an extensive screening process, but the person who was starting the program was from Boston and familiar with Berklee, and figured Eric would succeed. He actually entered the program as an English teacher, but switched over to math, as he found he had more passion for the subject (plus the better job security and lighter grading load don’t hurt either.) Eric has been successful in his program and received the hoped-for job offer from his school just a few weeks before the interview.

(Eric does not have a LinkedIn profile.)

Choice Quotes: “The program I’m in is a response to the old path of people who want to teach taking lots of classes but not getting much classroom experience which leads to a rough year for everyone. Since I’ll be working at the same school next year I’ve already built relationships with the students, which is really helpful.”

“It’s a lot of work. Between classes I teach, outside-the-classroom duties, and the classes I’m taking, it’s not uncommon for me to pull 60-70 hour weeks But it’s turning out well.”

“For a long time I was intimidated by the thought of not being a musician. I’d been a performance major! As I got older, I realized there was more to life than that. I asked if music was a vehicle to what I wanted in life.” Don’t be afraid to ask those questions and answer honestly.

Graduated in 2008 with a major in Music Business. Principal Instrument: guitar.

Position: Full Stack Software Developer at Legendary Entertainment. Bob works for a “business within a business” working for a branch of the major move studio that does data storage and implements data analysis tools for businesses, movie studios, sports, etc. Bob takes on the role of system administrator, configuring their systems property, but he also writes computer code and supports the analysts.

Overview: Prior to Berklee, Bob went to a magnet high school for computer science, and briefly studied computer science at the University of Maryland before transferring to Berklee. Bob’s required internship was with Sonicbids, and they wanted him to help with the technical side. As his internship ended and he graduated Sonicbids offered him a job doing software QA (Quality Assurance), where he worked for two years before moving back to Maryland to get married. In Maryland, he co-founded a company to build websites for businesses, though he found the work a bit repetitive, so after a year he took a job with another startup as a product manager, then in mid-2013 as a project manager at a mid-size marketing agency after that startup failed.

In early 2014, Bob’s former boss from Sonicbids, now at Legendary Entertainment, reached out to him–he was building a team and wanted Bob on it…as a programmer! Bob moved up to Boston and spent a lot of time figuring out computer code. He has been successful and at that job ever since.

Choice Quotes: “Software engineering is so logical. There’s an abundance of resources that put it all out for you, and if you spend the time to find them you’ll get the answer.”

“I work with most of the smartest people I’ve ever known. I’m lucky to be on the team!”

“Keep an open mind. Don’t feel that because your background is in music, you can’t learn something else. You have time to master many things in your life.”

“Someone can explain harmony to you and tell you how to play an instrument, but to acquire the ability you have to practice yourself and undertake that learning practice yourself. It forces you to learn how to learn, and to discipline yourself to practice and go further. Berklee is where I learned how to learn for myself.

Nick Potvin

Graduated in 2009, with a major in Film Scoring. Principal instrument: piano.

Position: Ad Technology Manager for the PGA Tour, the institution that coordinates various professional golfing tournaments. A combination of management, coordination and technical skills (coding, etc.), Nick implements third-party ads on the PGA’s website and mobile apps, as well as verifies that interactive ads comply with legal privacy standards. His job involves coding, supervision, and planning.

Overview: Gradating into the tough job market of 2009, Nick moved to Atlanta, hearing that there was a thriving music scene there and less competition. Work on a documentary film while still a student ultimately connected him with the producer of BET’s Soul Train Awards, where Nick started working on a freelance basis–composing a bit, helping with productions, coordinating the data during a production, and building websites and online marketing for bands at a time that they couldn’t just put videos on YOUTube. He wasn’t making much money, but very much appreciated the power and opportunities of digital marketing.

By 2012, the freelance work was starting to dry up, and Nick decided to get move back to the Boston area and get his Masters of Professional Studies in Digital Media Management at Northeastern University. He spend over 3 years getting the “two year” degree, as he was working full time during that time–first for a political blog in Rhode Island, then for a tech start-up, then for a marketing agency. Some months after graduation, CVS recruited him, at a substantial pay bump, to be their digital planning and operations manager. By the spring of 2016 Nick deciding he preferred the looser, more creative atmosphere of a smaller organization (and a milder winter), and recalling his love for golf, he reached out to the PGA to see about employment prospects. They hit it off, and, while they didn’t have an opening right away, everyone kept in constant touch until they had creating his current position for him, which he started in the fall of 2016.

You can see Nick’s LinkedIn profile here. Nick encourages anyone interested to reach out to him.

Choice Quotes: “”My coworkers are a fun group of young, vibrant, smart people who are fun to be around. I really enjoy how much the industry changes–I get bored quickly, but this space is booming and there are endless opportunities. There’s also good job security relative to when I was in the music industry.”

At the end of the day, there’s not much difference between a brand that has a message looking for creative ways to get in front of an audience is just like an artist coming up with a new chord progression or catchy lyric to get that song to click with an audience. Once you see the parallels, it’s cool to work in advertising.”

“If I knew what I know now, I’d still have gone to Berklee. I don’t think I’d be able to do what I do today if it weren’t for Berklee.” Berklee is a very competitive, with sink-or-swim mentality, which gave me a lot of confidence. Also networking–people need to build bands, need session players, etc.–there’s this constant understanding and respect for each other that’s monumentally important in the work world!”

“Go where the opportunities are, and don’t spend too much time questioning it. If back when I was a Berklee student someone had told me I’d be interested in data regulations I’d have said they were out of their mind! But because I was had conversations with people and was open to figuring it out I found a really fulfilling career path.”

Graduated in 2015 with a major in Music Business. Principal Instrument: violin.

Position: Assistant Media Planner at MediaHub (part of the MullenLowe Group), a large, multi-national marketing agency. Sarah specializes in getting marketing content in appropriate places on the internet and maximizing click-throughs and other actions by consumers. Her job involves lots of data-sorting, reporting, talking with people, and working with technology partners.

Overview: Sarah moved to L.A. in January of 2015, to do the music-industry internship required for her degree. She enjoyed the field, but disliked the specific work atmosphere, so after getting her degree she sought new opportunities, ultimately working as a part-time contractor for a high-tech staffing group and helping a new start-up with business development. However, around December the work dried up, as did her income. Sarah then co-founded a marketing/consulting business with a friend, targeting small businesses as well as musicians. The business struggled along, gradually doing better, as the bulk of their business was managing businesses’ Instagram pages. . They got office space and hired an employee. Then after about 8 months her partner went to work for a client while refusing to relinquish ownership of their company. Sarah decided, under those circumstances, to look for a job.

For a while, her job search was unfocused and yielded nothing, until a friend pointed out that her background made her well-suited for the role of media planner. Sarah’s boyfriend’s job was to edit commercials, and that also interested her in the power of marketing. With a new focus to her job search, Sarah quickly landed her current job (via a job posting) in January, 2017.

You can see Sarah’s LinkedIn profile here. Sarah wishes she had more opportunities to reach out to alumni as a student, and wants folks to be especially encouraged to reach out to her.

Choice Quotes: “My job is to find partners & vendors on behalf of our clients. We set things up and monitor it all, but the tech does most of the work.”

“At Berklee, we musicians constantly were told to know our audience. Marketing is the same thing as that. Just substitute ‘target demographic’ for ‘audience.'”

“I now realize that there’s a chance for companies that invest heavily in programmatic media to see a transparent ROI (Return On Investment). I get a lot of satisfaction from being able to show my clients exactly what a campaign did. ”

At Berklee everyone is super-passionate about music, and it’s easy to get caught up in that but it’s OK to work outside of music. The Berklee experience offers such a robust, unique perspective that will help you succeed in many fields.”

“If you want to start a career in marketing, working at a big agency is cool. It’s a good way to get experience and learn a lot before you work for a brand. Just like as music, expect to put in huge hours and it’ll take a while to be established, and always be eager to learn and do better.”

Graduated in 2007 with a major in Performance. Principal instrument: trumpet.

Position: Marketing Automation Manager at Zerto. Mark’s job combines marketing expertise with technical skills. He crafts most early messages to customers, writes marketing and communication plans for his mid-size company, and at the same time is an expert user/administrator of the specialized software Salesforce and Marketo.

Overview: Around halfway through Berklee, Mark realized that while he was good at music, he wasn’t “top dog,” and felt his prospects for a prosperous music career were shaky, so he started to think about what would be a good “day job.” Around this time he got a student-job at the Berklee Admissions Office’s mailroom. Several months after graduation, his former boss left (to go play music) and Mark–who had been in touch with the head of operations in that office, was offered his former boss’s job. Mark worked there for 6 years, receiving two promotions and developing expertise with the Salesforce software which the admissions office was using–including writing scripts to accomplish what the standard software could not.

During his fourth through sixth year working at Berklee, Mark worked on his MBA in Marketing from Boston University, as he figured he would be better paid for more challenging, but still creative, work. It became clear as he was finishing his MBA that there wasn’t room at Berklee to move up in his career, so Mark looked online for positions. He got a similar position to his current job a dining management company, but decided after 1.5 years that he’d rather be somewhere else. He put his resume online, a recruiter reached out to him. “Within two weeks, I had three job offers. They all paid the same, so I chose the place I would enjoy working at the most, which was Zerto.” Zerto has more than doubled in size since Mark arrived, and he recently hired his first underling to handle more of the day-to-days tasks while he focuses on the higher-level stuff.

Choice Quotes: “One positive about my job is because I’m so close to the data and see how everything works, I get my hands on a lot of different projects. That means I’m a lot more experienced than just an programs manager or a sales admin. I have to cross that line and be an expert at all things.”

“I like making things work. Everyone comes to me with requirements, and I have to think outside the box to make it happen as efficiently as possible. It’s like being the part of the band that gives the whole band their momentum, or books the gigs–I make it possible for the band the play. I take a lot of pride in doing that, and doing that well.”

“Even if you want to be a musician full time, think about how to support yourself. If you have a good day job with a retirement, you’ll have a more solid foundation to support yourself. A lot of folks say you have to fully commit or you won’t make it, and it’s not true. Look at the guy who left that job I took–he had a day job, then at age 35 he went off to tour with Avril Lavigne and has been doing great music ever since.”

Graduated in 2016 with a major in Music Business. Principal instrument: bass guitar.

Position: Director of Strategic Partnerships (Business to Business sales) at Daisy Labs, a high-tech start-up company which hosts multi-media content of professional and academic conferences. People pay for access to the content, and Daisy Labs shares the revenue with the conference organizers. John’s job is to reach out to conferences and set up these deals. He’s the one salesperson at this 9-person operation, though he is well-supported.

Overview: While at Berklee, John was heavily involved with Berklee ICE. He wanted to work in the startup world, and while interested in venture capital, felt it good to get some regular work experience first. After graduation, he spend four months searching for positions, interviewing, and networking. Ironically, it was a friend–a fellow-Berklee graduate, who reached out to him. The friend had been hired as marketing director for Daisy Labs and figures John had what it took to be successful in a sales role, including the design thinking program he’d learned at ICE–and John was hired on his friend’s word. The first day of work, he was sat down as they explained everything he’d have to do. John puts in over 60 hours/week, which includes research and refining his own techniques.

Choice Quotes: “I wanted to make sure the work I was doing was one I could learn a lot from, where I could grow as an operator. I wanted to have some level of impact on the business, not just be ’employee n+1′.

This job has been a ride! I’m new, and have had to lean a lot very quickly. I had a lot of awkward phone calls early on, but I recorded them all and listened to myself to figure out how to better and over time I settled in.”

“I never thought I”d get into sales, but I enjoy working with people a lot. Also, it’s not often they’re approached by someone saying ‘Hey how can I help you make money?’ I like being able to work with them to set up a good solution.”

“Personally, I love working with a small team at an early stage startup! I’m completely in control of my dept. but well supported by veterans in the field. I’m at least 10 years younger than everyone else–everyone helps me learn and get up to speed. I love that team dynamic. Also, I’m talking to CEOs, so am cultivating a really valuable professional network.”

“I had an amazing experience at Berklee. It prepared me for a lot of the uncertainty that I have to face in the startup world. Also, music already went through the digital transition–where the industry was disrupted by technology. Everyone is looking to us for solutions on how to deal with it. As a Berklee graduate, you have the answers–go give it to them.”